The recruitment of two Oxford Greens to help tackle climate change in the Maldives, has been welcomed by the South East's Green MEP, Caroline Lucas.

Aware that his country could be completely submerged by the end of the century due to rising sea levels, the President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed has asked environmental experts and authors Mark Lynas and Chris Goodall to come up with a plan to make the Indian Ocean nation carbon-neutral within 10 years.

Caroline Lucas, who's also Green Party Leader, said:
"This amazing opportunity shows that UK Greens really do have the expertise needed to help combat climate change. Under the new Climate Change Act, the UK's emissions will need to fall by 80 per cent by 2050 and the pressure is now on all nations to secure a binding, international deal which staves off the worst of climate change. I welcome the opportunity given to Chris and Mark to contribute to tackling this huge threat in the Maldives.'

The two were approached after a member of the Maldives Presidential staff read Mark Lynas's book"Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet".

Speaking from his home in Oxford, Mark said: "Various communities in the Maldives have already had to move away from the sea, because of incremental coastal erosion. If the Maldives can go carbon-neutral, it puts pressure on richer countries to follow suit."

Chris Goodall, Green Parliamentary Candidate for Oxford West & Abingdon, said: "In places like Oxford, we're generating emissions that make it almost certain the Maldives could be flooded within about 50 years, so I'm happy to volunteer my services in this way."

Both Greens have confirmed that they do not intend to fly to the Maldives.